Matt Porter Joins Yale Staff

Sep 16, 2011

Brings 25+ Years of Playing Experience from Australia

NEW HAVEN, Conn. –Matt Porter, who captained the Riverside Lions back in his native Australia, has joined the Yale field hockey staff as assistant coach. Porter will assist head coach Pam Stuper, associate head coach Tamara Durante and volunteer assistant Abby Ostruzka in working with the 2011 Bulldogs. He is in the process of getting his Masters of Environmental Management degree from Yale's School of Forestry and Environmental Studies.

Porter, who captained the Lions in 2009 and was named best club man in 2008, has played for more than 25 years. He has been coached by numerous former Australian national team players, including Australia's leading international goal scorer, Stephen "China" Davies. He has also played with and against some of the current and former Australian national team players.

"I am thrilled to have Matt join our team this season," said Stuper. "He brings an international flavor to our staff, and this is the first time in my 15 years as a head coach and assistant coach at Yale that we have had someone like that. Matt will work predominantly with our defense and assist in the skill development of our younger players."

Porter graduated from Murdoch University in Perth, Australia, with a bachelor of law degree and a bachelor of science degree in 2005. In 2006, he was one of 80 people (from a pool of 1,700 applicants) chosen as an Al Gore Climate Change Ambassador. That same year, he began working as an associate at Minter Ellison Lawyers, the largest law firm in Australia. He also began working as chairman of Carbon Neutral Ltd., one of Australia's largest not-for-profit carbon offset providers through tree planting, in 2007.

Porter has given more than 70 talks to businesses and organizations across Australia about climate change, and has chaired/acted as master of ceremonies at numerous national conferences. He is also the founder and director of the Myaravale Music Festival.